Device for a quick and efficient relief of spindle-pressed rollers



Sept. 8, 1959 F. UNGERER DEVICE FOR A QUICK AND EFFICIENT RELIEF OF SPINDLE-PRESSED ROLLERS Filed April 19, 1955 United States Patent 0.

DEVICE FOR A QUICK AND EFFICIENT RELIEF OF SPINDLE-PRESSED ROLLERS The present invention relates to a device for a quick and efficient relief of spindle-pressed rollers, as used in apparatus for straightening sheet material or in rolling mills 1 When rolling mills ;are arrested during their operation through interruptionof the current supply or for other reasons, it is not possible to rotate the spindles or screws, serving to press the rollers against each other, in order to relieve them fromthe pressure of the rollers. This impossibility of lifting the spindle-pressed upper rollers may have serious consequences, particularly in case of accidents, or when red hot'material is treated for straightening purposes.

There are already known devices of the hydraulically operated kind in which a speedy relief is effected through discharge of the hydraulic liquid. However, devices of this kind involve a comparatively high cost of manufacture because of the difliculties of sealing, particularly in case of high pressures.

Contrary to this, the device of the present invention achieves a quick relief of spindle-pressed rollers in a purely mechanical way, whereby the construction is so devised that the foot of the spindle tends to shift through wedge-action a pair of pressure members laterally away from each other, which pressure members are shiftably arranged on the yoke-part and held together by at least one locking-arm rotatably supported at one end of a pressure member or a group of pressure members, and whose other end bears from behind the second pressure member or the second group of pressure members against the rear end of these pressure members via one or a plurality of rotatably mounted plate-members Wllldll preferably are coupled to the free end of the locking-arm.

The pressure members or groups of pressure members consist preferably of wedges having their front ends op positely arranged, and upon the pressure flanks of which the foot of the spindle rests with parallel slanting surfaces.

When under load, the center of rotation of the plate members is positioned closer to the plane of the yokepart than the center of rotation of the rotatable lockingarm, whereby the plate-members are so devised that they rest, when under load, with a flat surface portion upon the plane of the yoke-part. In order to achieve a quick relief, the plate-members are initially lifted preferably by a wedge positioned between the plate-members and the yoke-part. This wedge is preferably arranged in a recess of the yoke-part and laterally driven into said recess in a direction vertically of the longitudinally axis of the rotatable locking-arm.

In addition to the fiat surface portion, with which the plate-members rest when under load upon the plane of the yoke-part, the plate-members are provided also with curved surface portions, with which they slide after relief of the pressure upon correspondingly curved surface portions of the pressure members and upon the fiat surface of the y0ke-part. When the pressure is relieved, the

2,902,893 Patented Sept. 8, 1959 rotatable arm or arms engage in recesses provided in the foot of the spindle.

The invention will be best understood from a consideration of the following detailed description taken in connection with the accompanying drawings, forming a part of this specification and in which an embodiment of the invention has been shown by Way of example. However, I wish to say that the invention is not confined to any strict conformity with the showing of the drawings, but may be changed or modified, so long as such changes or modifications mark no material departure from the salient features of the invention as expressed in the appending claims. a

In the drawings, in which like parts are referred to by the same reference numerals in all of the several figures:

Fig. 1 is a side-view of the device under load;

Fig. 2 is a front-view of the device;

Fig. 3 is a longitudinal sectional view of the device after relief of the pressure. 7

Referring now to the drawings in detail, the reference numeral 2 designates the foot of the spindle which by means of its slanting faces 3 and 4 rests upon the pressure,

flanks of two pairs of wedges 5 and 6. The other pressure flanks of the pairs of wedges 5 and 6 rest upon the plane 7 of the yoke-part 8. Between the wedges of the pair of wedges 5, the locking-arm 10 is rotatable about the pivot 9. At the other end of the locking arm 10, two

plate-members 12 are rotatable about the pivot 13. When under load, the center of rotation of the pivot 13 is positioned nearer to the plane of the yoke-part '8 than the center of rotation of the pivot 9. When the center of the pivot 13'is lifted upwardly away from theplane of the yoke-part to the height of the center of the pivot 9, the plate-members 12 are in unstable equilibrium and rotate, when lifted slightly higher, automatically through degrees (see Fig. 3), whereby their curved front faces slide along on the correspondingly curved rear faces of the pair of wedges 6, and on the flat surface 7 of the yoke-part 8, and also on the curved surface of the narrow wedge 14. This results in additional lifting of the center of the pivot 13. The arm 10 swings about the pivot 9 into the recess 11 of the foot 2 of the spindle, and the pairs of wedges 5 and 6, which at their front ends are spaced apart, are moved still further apart by the wedgepressure exerted by the slanting faces 3 and 4 of the foot 2 of the spindle upon the pressure flanks of the wedges 5 and 6. The result is that the foot 2 of the spindle moves down, and that the yoke-part 8 and the rollers are relieved.

The initial lifting of the plate members 12 is effected through driving of a narrow wedge 14 provided with a curved upper surface into a transversely extending recess or channel 15.

Positioned on both sides of the wedges 5 and 6 are bars 16.

What I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States is:

l. A releasable force-transmitting device for transmitting a superimposed force between two members comprising, in combination, a pair of wedges arranged adjacent each other with the inclined faces thereof facing each other, said wedges being interposed between the two members movable between an operative force-transmitting position and an inoperative position, one of said members engaging said wedges at the inclined faces thereof and tending, when a force is transmitted between said members to move said wedges to said inoperative position in which said wedges are farther apart than in said operative position; retaining means cooperating with said wedges for retaining the same in operative position and for releasing the same whenever desired, said retaining means including lever means pivotally mounted at one end thereof on one of said Wedges and pivotable in opposite directions beyond a dead-center position; blocking means preventing pivoting of said lever means beyond a blocking position in which said lever" "means is only slightly pivoted beyond said dead-center -position' and engages the other of said Wedges insucha manner that said Wedges are prevented from being spread apart; and means for moving said lever means from said blocking position past the dead-center position to a releasing position in which said lever means releases said wedges to move to said inoperative position thereof, whereby when said wedges are located between said members while said lever'means is in blocking position, said Wedges are prevented from spreading apart so that a force may be transmitted between said members, whereas when said retaining means has been moved from said blocking position past said dead-center position by said moving means, said Wedges may be spread apart thereby releasing the superimposed force.

2. The combination as defined in claim 1, in which said retaining means include a lever pivotally mounted at one end thereof on one of said wedges, and an' engaging element pivotally mounted adjacent 7 one end thereof at the other end of said lever andhaving a free end adapted to engage the other of said wedges at an engaging face extending transverse to said inclined face thereof. a

3. The combination as defined in claim 2, in which the pivot axes of said lever and said engaging element are substantially parallel to each other and in which w hen' said retaining means is in its dead cente'r position the point of engagement between said free end of said engaging element and said engaging face of said other wedge lies in a plane passing through said pivot axes.

planar face formed on'one of said members, wherein said wedges are slidably arranged on said face, and Wherein said engaging element, when said retaining means is in said blocking position, abuts said face.

6. The combination, as defined in claim 5, wherein said moving means includes a Wedge element slidably arranged between the one member and said engaging element and adapted to be wedged between the same so as to pivot said engaging element past dead center, thereby moving said retaining means into its releasing position.

7. The combination as defined in claim 6, wherein the other of the members is formed with a recess adapted to receive said lever after said retaining means has been moved into its releasing position.

8. i The combination as defined in'claim 5, wherein said engaging element is formed with a substantially planar surface portion which abuts against said planar face on the one member when'said retaining means is in said blocking position.

References Cited in the of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 119,692 Brough Oct. 10, 1871 655,554 Huston Aug. 7, 1900 729,544 Von Cawenburgh June 2, 1903 1,092,118 Strite Mar. 31, 1914 1,544,572 George July 7, 1925 2,038,795 Klocke Apr. 28,1936 2,194,138 Crawford in... Mar. 19, 1940 

